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Tom Clancys H.A.W.X. Review

William Thomas

20 Feb 2009 00:00Last updated: 9 Oct 2015 17:55

Release date27 Feb 2009

DeveloperUbisoft

The closest to Top Gun most console players will ever come.

★★★★★

Cleverly blending the wartime tales woven by EndWar and Ghost Recon, the latest game inspired by Tom Clancys testosterone-fuelled fiction takes the fight to the skies and is the closest to Top Gun most console players will ever come.

A flight combat game that ditches the bewildering controls that befuddle hardcore PC simulations, H.A.W.X. works hard to make dogfighting as intuitive as possible, gifting gamers with a computerised heads-up display that helps you spot targets as you fly faster than the speed of sound, and even plots a twisting path for you to follow if you need to dodge a flurry of heat-seeking missiles. The chance to switch off your targeting computer-assisted controls and use outrageous manoeuvres to rain death on your enemies also makes for deliriously thrilling aerobatics, and the opportunity to team up with other players for co-operative and deathmatch battles makes this the best console flight sim since Ace Combat. PC flight fans, of course, will be horrified by the stripped down controls, but for thrill-seekers who want supersonic action without memorising a zillion buttons, H.A.W.X. is fast, friendly and irresistibly good fun.